


Songbird Protocol

by Arboreal



Series: Songbird Protocol [1]
Category: Avengers Academy (Video Game)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-26
Updated: 2017-12-26
Packaged: 2019-02-17 05:04:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13069725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arboreal/pseuds/Arboreal
Summary: Tony apparently has a thing for musicians. It’s brand new information for him, but Bucky is irresistible.





	Songbird Protocol

**Author's Note:**

  * For [badgerling](https://archiveofourown.org/users/badgerling/gifts).
  * Inspired by [The Stark Beauty of Winter (has nothing to do with the Ice Palace)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/9641558) by [27dragons](https://archiveofourown.org/users/27dragons/pseuds/27dragons). 
  * Inspired by [Like Them](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8787244) by [Tahlruil](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tahlruil/pseuds/Tahlruil). 



> Thank you to [marsmaywander](https://archiveofourown.org/users/marsmaywander) for beta-ing this story.

Deep in an engineering haze and running on far too few hours of sleep, Tony Stark stared at the suddenly empty space in front of him. 

“JARVIS, my hologram is gone,” Tony said, slow to reconnect with reality after so long buried in the schematics for Sam’s new wings.

“Yes, Sir.  That does appear to be the case,” came the AI’s amused reply.  Tony was beginning to suspect the culprit behind his missing hologram. 

“Okay, JARVIS.  _Why_ is my hologram gone?” Tony asked.

“I have been trying to attract your attention for some time now.  You have standing instructions that if you are awake at this time and not working on anything time sensitive I should encourage you to take a break.”  Tony blinked tiredly as he processed that, then frowned.

“That doesn’t sound like me,” Tony said suspiciously.  Somehow, even without a body, Tony got the impression his AI was rolling his eyes.  It was impressive.  Tony would even be proud if JARVIS wasn’t using it against _him_. 

“You called it the _‘Smokin’ Hot Songbird Protocol’_?” JARVIS reminded him, synthesizing a sigh as he always did when having to use one of Tony’s more creative project names.  Tony perked up immediately.

“Oh.  Oh!  Damn, I didn’t realize it was that late.  Or early, I guess.”  Tony checked his watch and winced slightly.  Sure enough, it was a little after 5 A.M.  Today was going to be rough, but that was for future Tony to deal with.  Present Tony had a handsome singing former assassin to spy on.

Smiling in anticipation, Tony poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot that JARVIS had thoughtfully started.  They both knew there was no hope of Tony getting any sleep at this point and the only thing that would keep him functioning today would be copious amounts of caffeine. 

Beverage of the gods procured, Tony opened the door that lead to the observation deck and quietly walked out, taking in the view of Avengers Academy.  Aside from the street lamps illuminating the sidewalks, the campus was dark and still.  Tony shivered as he sat cross-legged at the end of the observation deck.   The chill of late autumn had settled over the city and Tony was glad of the jacket he had thought to grab on his way out.

Tony shivered for another reason as his gaze swept over the time fog at the edge of campus.  The temporal entanglement was easy to ignore in the hustle and bustle of everyday life at the Academy, but in the morning quiet the vague shapes and indecipherable whispers moving through the fog were particularly unsettling.  Tony quickly looked away.  The past didn’t always stay in the past where the time fog was concerned.  Tony was haunted by enough ghosts in his nightmares without encountering them in the waking world as well.

Just as his thoughts were about to tread into darker waters, Tony heard footsteps entering the quad below.  Carefully peaking over the edge, Tony bit his lip to keep his giddy reaction from escaping as James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, the Winter Soldier, walked into view and sat on one of the stone benches.  Tony watched Bucky pull his guitar out of its case, grinning as Bucky began to tune his guitar and hum under his breath.  A few minutes later, Bucky began to play and sing in earnest.

Tony leaned back, hugging his knees to his chest, and listened as Bucky’s rich voice filled the air.  The first time Tony had caught Bucky like this had been a complete, and lucky, accident.  His nightmares had been especially bad that night, full of sand and blood and pain, and left him shaking and gasping.  Tony had been in no fit shape to fly--he’d known that even without JARVIS’ warnings--but he’d been considering it anyway because the walls were closing in and he’d needed to _get out, get away, anywhere but here_.

He’d stumbled out onto the observation deck with every intention to take to the air despite his compromised state when he’d heard someone playing guitar in the quad below him.  Intricate and lovely, the unexpected melody emanating from the dark night had brought Tony up short.  When a voice had joined the quiet strumming, deep and mournful, Tony had stood frozen, curious about the mysterious singer but unwilling to move and possibly disturb the gentle spell the music evoked.  Tony remained there, listening, for most of an hour as the pre-dawn sky lightened and the adrenaline from his nightmares slowly faded away.  At sunrise, the quad fell silent.  Tony had ventured close enough to the edge of the platform and saw Bucky leaving the quad, his guitar case in hand and metal arm gleaming in the morning sun.

The identity of his mysterious singer had surprised Tony.  Whenever he’d heard Bucky and his band perform at Club A, they had always played hard rock and heavy metal almost exclusively.  Not that Tony was complaining, he and the other students loved dancing to their music, full of driving beats and wailing guitar riffs.  Tony would not have expected the ballads and folk songs and blues Bucky seemed to favor in the early morning hours, though. 

Granted, Tony would admit he didn’t know much about Bucky.  Since defecting from the Hydra, Bucky had kept largely to himself, with the notable exceptions of Cap and the occasional gig at Club A.  Tony could count on one hand the number of conversations he’d had with Bucky since his arrival months ago, and even those had mostly consisted of Tony rambling on about some topic or other while Bucky watched him warily.  He seemed shy and a little awkward, unsure in his own skin, and nothing like Tony had envisioned the fearsome Winter Soldier. 

Despite not really knowing the guy, though, Tony found himself reluctant to tell anyone else about what he had seen.  It felt private, a secret between them even if Bucky hadn’t known he was there.  Nothing in Tony’s life was private.  He was the son of Howard and Maria Stark, heir to the Stark fortune and the powerful Stark Industries when his time at Avengers Academy was over.  He was Iron Man.  Everything in his life was reported, commented on and scrutinized.  If Tony said anything, everyone on campus would know about it within hours and that seemed like a shitty thing to do to Bucky who had obviously just wanted some time to himself.  Besides, it was kind of exciting, knowing something about the mysterious Bucky Barnes that no one else did.

So, after that first early morning encounter Tony kept the knowledge to himself and set up his Songbird Protocol.  Tony had only caught Bucky a handful of times since then, but it was still a bit of a thrill.

Tony sipped his coffee and idly watched the stars fade from the pre-dawn sky as he continued to listen.  When Bucky transitioned smoothly from one song to the next, Tony felt a lump in his throat as he recognized the melody. 

[ _“Long ago and far away, I dreamed a dream one day”_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imdiY87pqAU), began Bucky, and Tony hid his face in his knees even though there was no one to see the wetness in his eyes.   It was from an old movie, starring the lovely Rita Hayworth and a dashing Gene Kelly, and had been a favorite of his mother’s.  They had watched it often when he was home from school.  It had brought a smile to her lips on even her worst days and hearing it now made Tony miss her with an ache that made it hard for him to breath. 

 _“And now that dream is …”_   Bucky stopped suddenly as he fumbled a cord, cursing quietly.  Tony sat up and wiped his eyes, frowning when Bucky started again, only to stop a few measures later with another fumbled cord and a pained groan.  Tony inched forward, concerned.  Sure enough, when he peaked over the edge of the platform he saw Bucky massaging his left shoulder where his prosthetic arm attached and even from a couple of stories up Tony could see Bucky’s pained grimace. 

Tony backed away and stood up quietly, an idea forming in his head.  He had never seen Bucky falter like this before.  Of course, he’d only been watching Bucky for a few months and the weather had been unseasonably warm until the recent cold snap, which meant Tony had a pretty good idea what was causing Bucky trouble.  Unfortunately, the weather was only going to get colder, and it would get more unpleasant for Bucky if he was right.  Tony sighed.  If he wanted to help, he’d have to admit to Bucky he’d been listening to him play.  Too bad that would probably be the end of his early morning serenades.  Ah well, the Smokin’ Hot Songbird Protocol had been fun while it lasted. 

Tony left the observation deck and jogged down to the ground level of the Tower, stepping out onto the quad.

“Hey, Elsa,” Tony called out as he approached the other student, “I think the two of us need to have a chat.”  Tony’s voice was loud in the otherwise silent morning, and Tony realized a moment too late that surprising a formerly brainwashed assassin might not have been the smartest move.  Faster than Tony could register the movement, Bucky whipped around to face him, crouching by the bench and brandishing the guitar like a weapon.

“Whoa, whoa,” called Tony, raising his hands in the universal sign for ‘I come in peace’.  “It’s just me.  You remember me, right?  Tony Stark, devilishly handsome genius?  Friend of Cap’s?”  Tony took a few steps closer and he saw Bucky’s eyes widen in surprise.

“Tony?  What are you doing out here?” 

“Oh, just inventing the future,” Tony said with a bright smile, gesturing to Stark Tower behind him.  When Bucky just continued to stare, Tony tried again.  “Do you, uh, think you could lower the guitar?  My face is too pretty and that is too nice an instrument for you to club me to death with it.”

Bucky blinked, looked down at his hands as if he’d forgotten what he was holding, and then quickly brought the guitar down to set it gently on the bench.  Tony warily walked closer now that the immediate threat had passed.

“Sorry ‘bout that,” Bucky said quietly, rubbing the back of his neck and looking down at his feet.  It was hard to tell in the light from the street lights, but Tony thought Bucky might be blushing.  Tony tried very hard not to find it adorable.

“Hey, survival instincts,” Tony said with a shrug and a smile.  “I’m not going to knock them.  Cap keeps insisting that I need to develop some, but they never seem to take.”  Bucky still wasn’t looking at him, but Tony heard him snort and mutter something about pots and kettles.

“So, anyway,” Tony continued after a few moments, anxious to fill the awkward silence, “I could hear you from the observation deck?  And …”

“What?” Bucky said, looking up at Tony in alarm, and then at the Tower, before bringing his hand up to cover his eyes.  After a moment he sighed and lowered his hand to look at Tony again, cheeks definitely a little red this time.  “Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize anyone would be around to hear it.  I didn’t mean to bother you.  I can find someplace else to play,” Bucky said quietly, turning to pick up his guitar.  Tony hastily put an arm out to stop him.

“Oh.  No. No, no, no.  You’re perfectly fine, really, no bother,” Tony assured him, probably a little too quickly.  Tony could feel his own cheeks start to heat now.  Bucky turned back to him in surprise, and Tony couldn’t stop himself from rambling.  “I mean, I can only hear you when I’m outside?  And, let’s face it, even I’m not usually awake at this insane of an hour unless there’s an emergency.  So I’ve only heard you play, you know, once in a while, by chance, completely by accident, no worries.  Umm, yeah.”  Tony nearly cringed at himself, and hoped Bucky didn’t think that sounded too stalkerish.

Tony must have been in luck.  Bucky seemed a little wide-eyed and confused, a common expression by anyone caught in one of Tony’s rambling dialogues, but there was also a hint of a smile playing around his lips.  Tony would count it as a win and smiled back.

“Right, well, like I was saying, I could hear you from the observation deck and you seemed to be having some trouble and I thought I might be able to help,” Tony said brightly, nodding towards Bucky’s left shoulder.  Bucky’s open expression immediately turned wary, eyes hard, and he took a step back, turning so his metal arm was hidden from Tony’s view.  Bucky suddenly seemed a lot more dangerous than Tony was used to seeing him.

“I’m fine,” Bucky said, a warning in his voice, regarding Tony with suspicion.  Tony was taken aback by the abrupt change, but he wasn’t going to back down just yet.  He crossed his arms and gave Bucky a doubtful look.

“Are you sure?  This morning was the first time I’ve ever heard you falter while playing,” Tony pointed out.  When Bucky only frowned harder, Tony sighed.  “Listen, I’m guessing HYDRA weren’t too concerned with niceties when they designed your arm, and didn’t add anything to keep it body temperature. Since the weather’s turned colder, the metal arm is leaching away heat and making your shoulder ache where they’re connected, right?”  Tony gestured to himself and then the Tower.  “I can help.”

Bucky narrowed his eyes for a moment, before shaking his head and turning back to pick up his guitar and place it in its case.

Tony bit his lip, uncertain what to do.  He didn’t want to upset Bucky further, especially this more menacing version, but he hated the idea of the guy being in pain all winter.  Tony grimaced.  Maybe a little quid pro quo was in order.  Tony took a careful step closer to where Bucky was snapping the clasps on the guitar case closed and held out his right gauntleted arm.  

“Okay,” Tony said as he opened a panel below the elbow, “just look.”  Bucky swung around angrily and looked ready to start a row, but stopped abruptly when he caught site of the exposed wires and servos that made up Tony’s lower arm.

“What?” Bucky said, shocked, looking with sharp eyes from the arm, to Tony, and back.  Tony shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny, but didn’t pull his arm away.

“Yeah, this and the arc reactor, souvenirs from a … forced vacation you could say,” Tony said grimly, then shrugged.  “I mean, you must have wondered why I never take the right gauntlet off, even when I’m not wearing the rest of the Iron Man armor.  It’s not a secret, but people just … don’t think about it, I guess.”

Bucky studied Tony’s mechanical arm for some time before reaching his flesh hand out as if to touch, but stopped a few inches away.  Tony nodded when Bucky looked up for permission and Bucky gently took hold of the gauntlet wrist. 

“It feels warm,” Bucky said, tilting his head inquisitively. 

“Yep,” Tony said with a grin.  Pulling his arm away from Bucky’s gentle grip, he motioned for Bucky to lean in closer as he pointed to something in the open panel.  Bucky did so with only a slight hesitation.  “See the orange-gold layer covering the inside of the arm?  With the metal filaments running through it?  That’s based on a polyimide film flexible heater.  I had to upgrade them for use in the arm and the suit, of course, but I can keep them at any temperature I want. I have plenty left over in my lab.” 

Bucky frowned again, but he seemed to be more thoughtful than angry as he considered the thin heating layer.  Finally, Bucky straightened and took a step back, looking away.  He was quiet for a few moments before shooting Tony a quick glance, the dangerous air that had appeared when Tony had first mentioned Bucky’s arm melting away.

“I, uh, don’t like anyone else messing around with my arm.  HYDRA wasn’t always … careful” Bucky said guardedly.  From what Tony knew of HYDRA, that was probably a gross understatement, but he wasn’t going to call Bucky on it.

“Hey, no problem,” Tony said closing the panel on his own arm, “I have a few small film heaters that come with adhesive.  I use them for some of my other projects.  You should be able to place them inside your arm near your shoulder yourself.  That should help with the pain.  I even have a small power source and controller you can use.”  Bucky relaxed considerably at those words and was even beginning to look hopeful.

“You wouldn’t mind?” Bucky asked, slinging the guitar case strap over his shoulder, face once more open and friendly.

“Not at all, Buttercup,” Tony assured, then grinned when Bucky ducked his head at the endearment.  “Do you want to come up now and have a look?”  At Bucky’s nod, Tony led him across the quad and into the Tower.  Bucky was gratifyingly impressed with Tony’s lab, especially when he was introduced to JARVIS, and quick on the uptake when Tony explained how to install the heaters.  He set Bucky up at one of the workbenches with the necessary parts and tools and booted up a workstation nearby to keep himself occupied, close enough to answer questions but hopefully far enough away to make Bucky comfortable.  He was rewarded a few minutes later when he heard Bucky sit down and begin adjusting the metal plates of his arm.

Buoyed by his success, Tony asked JARVIS to bring up the schematics for Sam’s wings again and lost a bit of time working on the recalcitrant project.   Tony noted a dozen possible alterations to the schematics, running simulations to test each one, but still could not find a combination that would solve the underlying problem.  Maybe if he changed the alloy composition of the propulsion components? 

He realized he’d been working for most of an hour when he heard Bucky chuckling nearby.

“What?” Tony asked, rubbing a hand over his bleary eyes.  Bucky looked up from working on his arm, grinning.

“I don’t think it’s possible for a lawnmower to make time with a pigeon, no matter what you think of the parentage of whatever you’re working on, but I’m pretty sure it would be illegal in at least seven states,” Bucky said with a laugh.  Tony winced.

“That was out loud, huh?”  Tony asked, embarrassed, running a hand through his hair.  Students and faculty came to the tower all the time to use various resources, but Tony usually had the lab to himself.  “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Bucky assured.  He craned his neck to try to get a better look at the hologram in front of Tony.  “What’s got you flipping your wig, anyway?” Bucky asked, curious. 

Tony blew out a frustrated breath and poked disconsolately at the glowing schematics in front of him until the full wire-mesh image of Sam’s wings appeared.  He glared at it them a moment, then turned back to Bucky.

“These are the Falcon Wings.  They’re jet-powered, articulated glider wings that are designed to be fast, maneuverable, and powerful enough to lift both the pilot and an evacuee.  You’ve seen Sam using them,” Tony said.  “Unfortunately,” he continued, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms with an annoyed huff, “they are also fuel hogs.  They were designed for short duration rescue missions, not extended battles.  They need to be more efficient if we want to keep Sam in the air for more than a quick skirmish. I’ve tried to make tweaks here and there, but that’s not really working.”  Bucky nodded as he studied the hologram with interest.

“And you can’t change too much without messing them up altogether,” Bucky guessed.

“Exactly,” Tony said, pleased that Bucky had understood the problem.  “You can’t just put a Prius engine in a Lamborghini body and expect to get a supercar that has great gas mileage. It doesn’t work that way.”  Tony sighed, then started disassembling the hologram Falcon Wings and systematically removing the entire propulsion system.  The virtual pieces Tony tossed away vanished as they fell.

“You’re going to start from scratch?” Bucky asked, returning to work on his arm while keeping an eye on Tony’s progress.

“On the propulsion system, yeah,” Tony agreed, “The superstructure of the wings itself is fine.”  He absentmindedly began describing his idea as his hands flew over the holographic display.  Tony didn’t really pay attention to what he was saying, too caught up in the new design, except to vaguely register Bucky laughing and occasionally asking a question.  They were good questions, too, so Tony didn’t mind.  Eventually Bucky gently pulled Tony’s seat away from his workstation and placed a mug of coffee in front of him.

“JARVIS says you have your eight o’clock class in fifteen minutes and you’re going to need this if you don’t want to nod off and cause another explosion,” Bucky said, looking worried.  Tony accepted the coffee gratefully, but waved off Bucky’s concern.

“It’s Professor Pym. If something doesn’t melt down, explode, or catch fire in class he doesn’t feel we’ve learned any Science! that day.  Thank you, though.”  Tony took a large swallow of coffee, noting that Bucky didn’t seem reassured.  “Really, it’ll be fine,” he tried again, yawning, before recalling why Bucky was here to begin with.  “Oh hey, your arm!  How’d that go?” Tony asked with interest.  Bucky looked down at his metal arm, running his flesh hand along the top plate where the heaters had been placed.

“You were right, the warmth helps.  My shoulder already feels better.”  Bucky glanced shyly up through his eyelashes.  “Thanks, Tony.”  Tony shrugged and smiled, a fluttery feeling in his chest.

“Happy to help,” he said, “you’re something else on that guitar of yours.”  Bucky smiled, surprised, then a teasing glint entered his eyes.

“Then maybe the next time you come out to hear me--completely by accident--you should come say hi,” Bucky said before leaning in to give Tony a peck on the cheek.  Bucky’s face was a bright red when he leaned back, but he also looked very pleased with himself before he beat a hasty retreat out of Tony’s lab, guitar across his back.

Tony sat, openmouthed with shock, before breaking out in a huge grin.  It looked like the Smokin’ Hot Songbird Protocol wasn’t over, after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!  
> To give credit where it is due:
> 
> The idea that Bucky's arm might hurt when the temperature gets cold came from a story by [27dragons](https://archiveofourown.org/users/27dragons/pseuds/27dragons) called [The Stark Beauty of Winter (has nothing to do with the Ice Palace)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/9641558).
> 
> The idea that Tony's right arm might be a prosthesis in the Avengers Academy game come from a story by [Tahlruil](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tahlruil/pseuds/Tahlruil) called [Like Them](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8787244).
> 
> Lyrics from Long Ago (and Far Away) by Jerome Kern and Ira Gershwin from the movie Cover Girl.
> 
> I don't post often, but I can be found here on [Tumblr](http://arboreal-elm-ash-oak.tumblr.com/).


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